Latest News and Comment from Education

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Nite Cap 9-16-14 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT



James Baldwin said it best: 

"For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."


A BIG EDUCATION APE NITE CAP



9-16-14 Ed Notes Online
Ed Notes Online: A Letter to Janella: Is Bergtraum Special?This is the second time in 4 years this chapter has managed to convince a Chancellor but NOT THEIR OWN UNION, that a principal is abusive... Elfrank-Dana, CL, Murry Bergtraum HSHo hum, par for the course -- the UFT protecting principals over teachers for their pals at the CSA.I love John Elfrank-Dana -- He's so prolific I don't even have t
Student Voice in a Box: Final Release
Student Voice in a Box: Final Release: Student Voice in a Box: Final ReleaseThis is our final installment of Student Voice in a Box. We think that you’ll agree this week is our some of our best content yet.Ari Sussmann and the Student Voice CollaborativeThis week, Ari Sussman tells us about the Student Voice Collaborative and how to make impact on a schoolwide level. His stories are moving and the
1st Latina NEA President’s Concern: Testing, Teacher Pay and Undocumented Students « NewsTaco
1st Latina NEA President’s Concern: Testing, Teacher Pay and Undocumented Students « NewsTaco: 1st Latina NEA President’s Concern: Testing, Teacher Pay and Undocumented Students By Manuel De La Rosa, NewsTacoThe president of the nation’s largest teachers group visited the Rio Grande Valley in Texas as part of a two-day tour to discuss standardized testing, low teacher’s pay and undocumented childr
Charter v. Private School “Prepsters”: Manufacturing College-Ready Kindergartners
Charter v. Private School “Prepsters”: Manufacturing College-Ready Kindergartners: Charter v. Private School “Prepsters”: Manufacturing College-Ready KindergartnersSEPTEMBER 16, 2014 BY NANCY BAILEY 1 COMMENT“College Prep Begins in Kindergarten” is the motto for Cornerstone Preparatory School (a charter) in Memphis. HERE. A lot of charter schools advertise themselves as college preparatory schools
Russ on Reading: Can We Talk?
Russ on Reading: Can We Talk?: Can We Talk?I am channeling the late, great Joan Rivers today as I ponder the question that many education reformers have been asking: "Can we talk?"Lately you can't open a link to a pro-education reform blog without finding another reformster pleading for a civil conversation on education. My colleague and fellow founding member of the Guys with Beards and
Choosing Democracy: California Children Living Below the Poverty line
Choosing Democracy: California Children Living Below the Poverty line: California Children Living Below the Poverty lineNew Census Data Show That More Than One in Seven Californians -- One-Third of Them Children -- Lived in Poverty in 2013STATE'S OVERALL POVERTY RATE AND CHILD POVERTY RATE REMAIN HIGH DESPITE DECLINES SINCE 2011, HIGHLIGHTING NEED FOR POLICIES THAT BOOST WORKERS' EARNINGS SACRAMEN
Punk Rock Education Style | Crazy Crawfish's Blog
Punk Rock Education Style | Crazy Crawfish's Blog: Crazy Crawfish's BlogZesty Louisiana Education PoliticsPunk Rock Education StylePosted on September 16, 20140crazycrawfish:I really like this uplifting post about the current trajectory of the anti-deform movement and agree with the sentiment and assessment (and not just because of the shoutout to me.) :)Originally posted on Dad Gone Wild:In 1977
9-16-14 Schools Matter
Schools Matter: Here's What Standing Up Can Do!Are you, too, a heroine or hero waiting to act?by Jim Horn / 27min 9-15-14 Schools MatterSchools Matter: To Chris Barbic: There Will Be No Civility for Child Abusers and Corporate Profiteers2 by Jim Horn / 8min 9-14-14 Schools MatterSchools Matter: Indy's John Harris Loflin and José Evans' Big Gig at International ED ConferenceBy Doug MartinBelow is,
9-16-14 LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD
LA School Report - What's Really Going on Inside LAUSD (Los Angeles Unified School District): Editorial: LA Unified schools won’t get better if leaders fightEditorial: LA Unified schools won’t get better if leaders fight Via LA Times | Editorial Board This would be a difficult period for Supt. John Deasy and the Los Angeles Unified School District even if he and the school board were intent on wor
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The rats are having a field day at CPS
Mike Klonsky's SmallTalk Blog: The rats are having a field day at CPS: The rats are having a field day at CPSDead rat, one of many at a Southwest Side elementary school having problems with rodents and roaches since janitorial services were privatized.Aren't the 476 custodians being thrown out of their jobs by Rahm and his Aramark subcontractors, represented by SEIU Local 1? Can't help but wonder,
Cali Education Headlines - FCMAT
Fiscal Crisis & Management Assistance Team | CSIS – California School Information Services: Education HeadlinesTaft High coach, parents decry handling of hazing incidentThe head football coach at Taft Union High School, who was put on paid administrative leave after a hazing incident, complained at a crowded school board meeting Monday night that he’s been “stripped of something” he loves for
Obama pre-school grants have interest and skeptics :: SI&A Cabinet Report
Obama pre-school grants have interest and skeptics :: SI&A Cabinet Report :: The Essential Resource for Superintendents and the Cabinet: SEPTEMBER 16, 2014Obama pre-school grants have interest and skepticsby Kimberly Beltran(Wash., D.C.) Three additional states this week signaled their intent to apply for funding under the federal Preschool Development Grants program, bringing to 32 the total
Ricciotti: Teachers are not the enemy - Connecticut Post
Ricciotti: Teachers are not the enemy - Connecticut Post: Ricciotti: Teachers are not the enemyPublished 5:47 pm, Monday, September 15, 2014Fewer and fewer college graduates today are entering the teaching profession as teaching today is like working in a war zone. The war on teachers, which began when George W. Bushbecame president in 2000 and continues with the Obama administration, has taken it
Where we’ve been; what lies ahead | Parents Across America
Where we’ve been; what lies ahead | Parents Across America: Where we’ve been; what lies aheadAs the new school year begins, PAA has asked its chapters and affiliates to provide descriptions of the past year’s activities and what they’re planning for this year. We’ll be posting these descriptions a few at a time, starting with our Pennsylvania affiliates, Parents United for Public Education and Yin
Americans Want Teachers to Take a Bar Exam - The Atlantic
Americans Want Teachers to Take a Bar Exam - The Atlantic: Americans Want Teachers to Take a Bar ExamAccording to a new poll, the public is increasingly in favor of more stringent certification standards. But is the federal government prepared to pay for them?gwaar/FlickrIn a new poll out today, Americans say they want teacher preparation programs to raise the bar for entrance, provide longer trai
9-16-14 Seattle Schools Community Forum
Seattle Schools Community Forum: Tuesday Open ThreadYesterday, Google and Mayor Murray surprised Highland Park Elementary with a major announcement about their request via DonorsChoose.org. Google "flash-funded" classroom requests from every teacher in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties who had made a request at DonorsChoose.  From Seattle.gov:Google donated $338,000 for 388 projects re
9-16-14 Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL
Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day… | …For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL: A comic that perfectly demonstrates the potential downside of tech in the classroomI’m adding this Frazz comic strip to The Best Posts & Articles Highlighting Why We Need To Be Very Careful Around Ed Tech:3 by Larry Ferlazzo / 15min hide  //  saveTwo New iPad Resources That Look IntriguingHere are two new intriguing res
2014 PDK/Gallup PollPDK International
2014 PDK/Gallup PollPDK International: PDK/Gallup Poll46th Annual PDK/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public SchoolsView the results of the October 2014 PDK/Gallup PollView the results of the September 2014 PDK/Gallup PollAbout the pollDownload 2nd PDK/Gallup poll report released September 16, 2014Download 1st PDK/Gallup poll report released August 20, 2014Watch a recording of “Fi
#CommonCore Misinformation Being Spread by Principal and Teacher | Missouri Education Watchdog
#CommonCore Misinformation Being Spread by Principal and Teacher | Missouri Education Watchdog: #CommonCore Misinformation Being Spread by Principal and TeacherinShareSo what do you do when your educational professionals are outed as Pinocchio?The Play: Standardized Testing in a Minnesota School DistrictAct I: Day One of Standardized TestingScene:Parents opt children out of standardized Common Cor
9-16-14 All NEW Living in Dialogue - When Teachers Lose Rights, They Must Raise Test Scores or Go
Home - Living in Dialogue: When Teachers Lose Rights, They Must Raise Test Scores or GoBy John Thompson. I do not question the sincerity of most former Obama administration officials and other liberals who support Vergara v California and its spawn. Some have long and loudly blamed teachers for education underperformance, saying that it is our “low expectations” and not the legacies of generationa
Morning Wink 9-16-14 AM Posts #edchat #edreform
BIG EDUCATION APE - MORNING WINK  AM POSTSLISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-16-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for allDiane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Ohio: More Charters Failing than Public SchoolsStephen Dyer, education policy fellow at Innovation Ohio, has analyzed the latest state report cards. The state’s Governor, John Kasich, is pro-cha
LISTEN TO DIANE RAVITCH 9-16-14 Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all
Diane Ravitch's blog | A site to discuss better education for all: Ohio: More Charters Failing than Public SchoolsStephen Dyer, education policy fellow at Innovation Ohio, has analyzed the latest state report cards. The state’s Governor, John Kasich, is pro-charter, pro-voucher, and pro-market forces. He is no friend to public education. The legislature is the same. They want more schools that are
9-16-14 Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement"
Engaging Parents In School… | Going Beyond Parent "Involvement": “With Tech Taking Over in Schools, Worries Rise”Parent are rightfully concerned about who will be controlling school data about their child (see The Best Posts On The inBloom Data Fiasco). The New York Times just published With Tech Taking Over in Schools, Worries Rise, which gives a pretty good overview of the issue.2 by L
9-16-14 Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher
Fred Klonsky | Daily posts from a retired public school teacher who is just looking at the data.: S.O.R.E. field trip. Town Hall with Senators Biss and Manar on school funding, Special Needs.Illinois State Senators Dan Biss and Andy Manar. Members of our retired IEA chapter are concerned about our pensions. Not just our pensions. We are concerned about the preservation of public schools. That mean
9-16-14 Wait What? - Why Malloy’s (and Foley’s) anti-tax pledge is anti-middle class
Wait What?: Why Malloy’s (and Foley’s) anti-tax pledge is anti-middle classIn a September 3, 2014 Wait, What? post entitled, Foley and Malloy are just plain wrong on taxes, the blog explained that Malloy and Foley are be fiscally irresponsible with their pledge not to propose or raise taxes if they are elected. The article begins with the following; Although Governor Dannel “Dan” Malloy is fond […
Poll: Public Rejects Teacher Evaluations Based on Student Test Scores | NEA Today
Poll: Public Rejects Teacher Evaluations Based on Student Test Scores | NEA Today: Poll: Public Rejects Teacher Evaluations Based on Student Test ScoresSeptember 16, 2014 by twalker  Filed under Featured News, Top StoriesLeave a CommentBy Tim WalkerMore evidence that the country is waking up to toxic standardized testing can be found in the new PDK/Gallup poll on the Public’s Attitude Towards Publ
The Answer Sheet 9-16-14
Answer Sheet: How Common Core’s recommended books fail children of colorCritics of the Common Core  have questioned a number of different aspects of the standards, including how they were written, whether they are developmentally appropriate and whether too much emphasis has been placed on non-fiction at the cost of literature. Here is a look at an issue that has gotten little attention: How the r
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 9-16-14
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: Letters to the editor: SUPT. DEASY IS A DISTRACTION FOR LAUSDReaders React: Letters to the editor and readers' opinions. | LA Times http://lat.ms/1o0jDlo 16 Sept 2014 To the editor: Los Angeles Unified School District Supt. John Deasy got it right. At this point, the iPad scandal is not an internal LAUSD problem, it's a political issue. It became so fro
9-16-14 the becoming radical | Spare the Rod, Respect the Child: Abuse Is Not Discipline
the becoming radical | A Place for a Pedagogy of Kindness (the public and scholarly writing by P. L. Thomas, Furman University): Spare the Rod, Respect the Child: Abuse Is Not DisciplineAs a teenager and then a young adult, I witnessed in two different contexts a powerful and publicly praised adult who was not what he appeared. Particularly when I was a young adult, early in my career, I was able
9-16-14 Hemlock on the Rocks
Hemlock on the Rocks: Do You Have VIABLE Complaints Against LAUSD? Check this out ....Teaching Community, Have you filled out your Grand Jury Complaint Form asking for theLos Angeles Grand Jury to investigate Superintendent Deasy forabuse of power ? If not review the forms attached.1) Grand Jury Complaint Example Form with 2nd Page Instructions2) Blank Grand Jury Complaint Form (to be printed out
9-16-14 Curmudgucation - Choice Finance Fantasies (Part II)
CURMUDGUCATION: Choice Finance Fantasies (Part II)I love the internet. In particular, I love the way it allows for conversations to break out between people who would never meet or interact in real life. This is one of those conversations.First, I wrote this piece about what I see as some fallacies in the ideas behind choice financing. Soon afterwards, Neerav Kingsland wrote this response at the b
9-16-14 Perdido Street School
Perdido Street School: Charter School Advocates Sue New York State For More MoneyWhat Governor Cuomo did for NYC charter schools by forcing the city to either find space for charters or pony up rent for private space?Charter advocates want that same advantage state-wide:A lawsuit filed by a group of charter-school supporters alleges that a chronic funding gap between charter schools and traditiona
Schools Open In Philadelphia, But Crisis Drags On | janresseger
Schools Open In Philadelphia, But Crisis Drags On | janresseger: Schools Open In Philadelphia, But Crisis Drags OnPosted on September 16, 2014 by janressegerSuperintendent William Hite opened school in Philadelphia on September 8—based, it seems, on hope and a prayer.  It can’t be said that he could really even count on the good faith of the Pennsylvania general assembly, whose members went home f
Nine years after Katrina, we’re still asking the wrong questions about education | The Hechinger Report
Nine years after Katrina, we’re still asking the wrong questions about education | The Hechinger Report: Nine years after Katrina, we’re still asking the wrong questions about educationBy Andre Perry“Is the educational system better now than it was pre-Katrina?” It’s the question I hear more than any other. But the typical responses around test score growth miss how we should measure school perfor
Inequitable Teacher Salaries Studied by Arkansas Legislature | EduSanity
Inequitable Teacher Salaries Studied by Arkansas Legislature | EduSanity: INEQUITABLE TEACHER SALARIES STUDIED BY ARKANSAS LEGISLATUREOn September 9th I picked up a copy of the Arkansas Democrat Gazette and read a story about teacher salaries titled “Lawmakers Study Salaries for Educators.” Of course this is something that I care about not only because I used to be a teacher and earned one of thos
How the media help spread Cami’s lies | Bob Braun's Ledger
How the media help spread Cami’s lies | Bob Braun's Ledger: How the media help spread Cami’s liesIt’s a lie. Some more polite than I might call it a half-truth or just a technical lie but I have had experiences with Anderson lies–remember how she denied sending out that letter about how kids would become criminals if they stayed home from school, the one she denied sending out? How she insisted sh
Chicago parents give school closures a poor report card | Al Jazeera America
Chicago parents give school closures a poor report card | Al Jazeera America: Chicago parents give school closures a poor report cardA year after nearly 50 schools closed, overcrowding and safety are big concernsCHICAGO — It’s the end of the first day of school, and Irene Robinson is making the rounds outside Anthony Overton Elementary, in Bronzeville, a historically black neighborhood on the city
Teachers For Social Justice: Calling Educators and Organizations for TSJ Curriculum Fair 2014!
Teachers For Social Justice: Calling Educators and Organizations for TSJ Curriculum Fair 2014!: Calling Educators and Organizations for TSJ Curriculum Fair 2014!SEPTEMBER 15, 2014 LEAVE A COMMENTTSJ Curriculum Fair 2014 Is Back!1. Exhibit Curriculum, or2. Have a Resource Table, or3. Present a Workshop!Applications Available Below! Do you want to exhibit your curriculum at the TSJ CF?Click here to
Shanker Blog » The Superintendent Factor
Shanker Blog » The Superintendent Factor: The Superintendent FactorPosted by Matthew Di Carlo on September 16, 2014One of the more visible manifestations of what I have called “informal test-based accountability” — that is, how testing results play out in the media and public discourse — is the phenomenon of superintendents, particularly big city superintendents, making their reputations based on
NYC Educator: The First Test
NYC Educator: The First Test: The First TestYesterday I wrote a test to give my beginners on Thursday. It's mostly easy, I think. I'd like them to do well. But you never know. Today a kid walked in who appeared to know absolutely zero English. If he blows the test I won't count it. The thing is, kids walk in every single day. He's missed maybe two weeks. He can catch up, though.But he's far from t
Opinion: Snapshot of Our Schools Offers Worrisome Glimpse of Class of 2027 - NJ Spotlight
Opinion: Snapshot of Our Schools Offers Worrisome Glimpse of Class of 2027 - NJ Spotlight: OPINION: SNAPSHOT OF OUR SCHOOLS OFFERS WORRISOME GLIMPSE OF CLASS OF 2027MARK WEBER | SEPTEMBER 16, 2014My kids were well-served by New Jersey’s public education system, but can all parents say the same?Mark WeberI’m an elementary music teacher, and we have a funny tradition that starts each year at my scho

YESTERDAY

4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit 9-15-14
4LAKids - some of the news that doesn't fit: LAUSD’S STUDENTS NEED BETTER LIBRARIES, NOT iPADS + smf’s 2¢A good school library is not in conflict with technology; it can enhance our understanding and use of it Op-Ed By Rebecca Constantino in the LA Times |  http://lat.ms/1uEk1L7 A student reads a book after visiting the library at San Pedro Elementary School. (Los Angeles Times) Sept 15, 2014  :: 
Competition for National Civics Program - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education)
Competition for National Civics Program - Year 2014 (CA Dept of Education): State Schools Chief Tom Torlakson Announces Competition for National Civics ProgramSACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson announced today that high school principals have until October 1, 2014 to nominate students for the prestigious United States Senate Youth Program (USSYP), which sends stude
#Stopcommoncore Grassroots Effort Destroys ‘Misinformed’ Common Core PR Video | Missouri Education Watchdog
#Stopcommoncore Grassroots Effort Destroys ‘Misinformed’ Common Core PR Video | Missouri Education Watchdog: #Stopcommoncore Grassroots Effort Destroys ‘Misinformed’ Common Core PR VideoinShareA textbook example of #CommonCorePRFailHow’s that revamped PR campaign to make the Common Core more palatable to parents and taxpayers compelled to pay for education reform directed/developed by private non-
Nite Cap 9-15-14 #BATsACT #RealEdTalk #EDCHAT
James Baldwin said it best: "For these are all our children, and we will profit by or pay for whatever they become."A BIG EDUCATION APE NITE CAPWhat Would Campbell, Mona, and Sam Have to Say? southbronxschoolhttp://www.southbronxschool.com: What Would Campbell, Mona, and Sam Have to Say?Some interesting news came across the SBSB news desk today.A teacher, let's call him, Rudy Baylor, was